1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to personal living modules for sleeping, studying, and storage of personal possessions for institutional residents, and more particularly, to modules which are easily assembleable by adolescent residents as part of a behavior modification program.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A variety of problems are consistently encountered by institutional personnel and therapists in the course of caring for residents of child residential treatment centers, adolescent group homes, reform schools, and the like. Some of these problems are due to the institutional environment, especially to the type and poor quality of facilities ordinarily available to the residents. Consequently, residents frequently complain that they do not identify with the facility or personnel because of a pervasive "institutional atmosphere". This results from the lack of privacy, and lack of efficient, theft-proof storage space for personal possessions, and sterile, shabby appearance of the living facilities. As a result, the residents frequently feel imprisoned, and become increasingly alienated to both the institution and its personnel and therefore fail to obtain benefits of treatment at the institution, which benefits might otherwise be received and responded to by the residents. Lack of personal storage space results in frequent theft of personal possessions of residents, causing further frustration of those who lose their few personal possessions, and further negatively affecting their general attitude and their receptiveness and responsiveness to treatment. Frequently, the facilities of the above institutions include government issued facilities, such as metal army type cots and foot lockers, and unattractive and uncomfortable bedding. Donated furniture from the community is frequently available to such institutions, but is usually in very poor condition, and is usually unattractive and not at all suitably designed for institutional use. Private closet space and locked individual storage space of any type is often completely unavailable. A large number of such beds are commonly placed in a single room, and the residents have absolutely no privacy and no opportunity to be alone. At best, the residents achieve substantially less benefit from the treatment offered by the institution than they would receive if better facilities were available, and at worst, their condition deteriorates rather than improves during their stay in the institution. Further, proper maintenance costs are usually very high at the above institutions due to the destructive acts of residents who are highly alienated toward the institution and its facilities.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide personal living modules for institutional residents which provide a reasonable degree of privacy for each resident.
Another object of the invention is to provide personal modules for institutional adolescent residents which reduce maintenance costs.
Still another object of the invention is to provide personal modules for residents which reduce the institutional atmosphere and reduce residents' alienation toward facilities and personnel of the institution.
Certain types of heavy, wooden bunk-type modules are know, having a high bed, a ladder with dowel-type rungs, and a chest of built-in drawers beneath the bed supporting one end of the bed and a desk surface supported between the chest of drawers and an end support supporting the opposite end of the bed. However, such modules are quite unsuitable for use in child residence treatment centers and adolescent group homes, etc., due to the fact that the large amount of drawer space is largely unused (because residents usually have very few personal possessions) and the drawers are not sufficiently large to store certain kinds of equipment, such as sporting equipment, which is highly valued by children or adolescent residents. The drawers are not lockable by a single key, a separate chair is required for the desk, and the raised bed portion is unsafe and affords very little privacy. The ladders are unsafe because they can be disassembled and utilized by weapons by emotionally disturbed residents. In short, the foregoing module, although possibly quite attractive for use in childrens' rooms in private homes, does not meet the needs of the above institutions. Further, modules of the foregoing design are quite expensive.
Accordingly, yet another object of the invention is to provide a safe, theft-proof, personal living module of relatively low cost which does not have small removable components which can be destructively deployed by adolescent residents.